Filenews 4 May 2022 - by Fanis Makridis
Not at all flattering picture of Cyprus is presented on Italian state television. In the very popular show "Report" of RAI3, our island is promoted as an asylum for those entrepreneurs who want to conduct their business activities away from prying eyes. In fact, following up on the action of Qatar's Al Jazeera channel, Italian television displays images from law firms, with an emphasis on the president's former office, where journalists tried unsuccessfully to "interrogate" lawyers.
Under the title "the children of the Kremlin", special reference is made to Russian businessmen belonging to the circle of the Russian President, Vladimir Putin. The latter have either used the Cyprus Investment Programme to obtain a passport, or have registered with the Registrar of Cyprus Business Entities to serve their financial interests without any particular obstacles.
The references to the law firm founded by the President of the Republic, Nicos Anastasiades, are continuous and clear. The journalist of Italian television, Giulio Valesini, who came to Cyprus for the purposes of the journalistic research of the show "Report", says: "The palaces of Cyprus keep several secrets of Russian oligarchs. In Limassol, there are the headquarters of the prestigious law firm founded by the lawyer Nicos Anastasiades, who later became President of the Republic of Cyprus. To avoid conflicts of interest, this is run by his daughters instead." Then, the show presents the brief discussion that Valesini had at the offices of the law firm in Limassol with Theofanis Filippou, one of the partners of the law firm "Nikos Chr. Anastasiades & Associates LLC".
Former Supreme Court President Myron Nicolatos, speaking toRAI3's journalistic team, said that the President of the Republic, Nicos Anastasiades, was accountable to the committee that investigated the exceptional naturalizations.
The spokesman of the Audit Office, Marios Petrides, also made television statements to RAI3 channel. When asked if there were any pressures and threats to EY's investigation into naturalizations, he replied in the affirmative. He added that "we have read some reports that the Government has considered the possibility of absolving the Auditor General of his duties"."
